2 Months of Hope Down the Drain
I was interviewing for a job I was such a great fit for. My experience was super aligned with the role, I had a great rapport with everyone I met. I was put through three rounds of interviews and completed two different (unpaid) assignments to show the work I could do. My third interview went really well. One of the interviewers even responded warmly to my thank you email, which I thought was a great sign. I felt so good about this one. And then today I got the rejection email. They said the candidate pool was really strong and someone else had experience that aligned more closely with their needs.
The whole process has been about 2 months, and I feel like I haven't been able to properly relax since the first interview, I just feel devastated.
I'm grateful I have a job - but it's currently really horrible. I feel so stuck. I'm a Communications Professional with over 13 years of experience and my pay is low and my boss treats me like I'm his personal assistant/secretary.
After this experience, I really don't feel super compelled to keep applying, though.
I know this is how it goes but it really hurts, especially after really thinking everything went well and getting so much positive feedback.